Western earns regional title, sends 9 to state meet

February 10, 2008|By Peter Holehan Staff Writer

Parkland — Western wrestling coach Charlie Morgan had stressed to his team before it takes the mat to focus on getting the first takedown, wearing their opponent down and then rack up as many points as possible.

The strategy worked as Western outworked 26 other schools in the Region 3-3A wrestling championship at Douglas High. The Wildcats topped all teams with 183 points and will send nine wrestlers to the state tournament that begins Thursday in Lakeland. The top four in each weight class qualified.

The showing was just what Morgan was seeking after the team sent just three wrestlers to state a season ago and placed 10th in the county championships last month.

"This is what we strive for," said the six-year coach. "I'm so proud of these kids for their ability to transverse through adversity. Earlier this season, we had traveled to tough tournaments in Dade County and Naples. We took a butt-kicking, but it made us wrestle much harder. This is a tenacious group with no all-stars. They're just hard-working, blue-collar kids who will beat you up."

Among the winners for the Wildcats were junior Zack Parker at 135 pounds and sophomore Justin Wilson at 189. Parker defeated Plantation's Kristian Schafer 9-2 while Wilson beat Douglas' Jay Taylor 8-3 to improve to 23-2.

"I knew it wouldn't be easy," Parker said. "He [Schafer] had beaten me in the district and county championships earlier this year. I was way more aggressive this time and not intimidated. We had wrestled all over the place this year and all the work paid off."

Wilson accomplished a similar feat by defeating Taylor, who had beaten him in the county championship.

"This is overwhelming," Wilson said. "The toughest part was that knowing that he has more experience than me. All the hard work in the wrestling room has made this worth it."

Douglas finished strong with a second-place finish and a score of 164.5.

Brothers Stephon and Javon Arcelay, of Miramar High, won back-to-back bouts in the 140- and 145-pound classes, respectively. The two have a combined record of 78-2 on the season.

South Broward senior Allen Held Jr. kept his undefeated season alive as he defeated Austin Cole of Douglas 8-6 to move his record to 37-0. It is his third consecutive regional championship, although he has yet to win a state title.

"I'm ready to go for it," Held said. "I'm dedicated. I feel like I have to redeem myself after getting to the final and not winning it. One thing is for sure - I'm not going down without a fight."